From dramatic debuts to Oscar-worthy performances, these young talents proved that age is just a number in Hollywood. Join us as we celebrate the most remarkable child performances that stole the spotlight from their veteran co-stars, delivering unforgettable moments that changed cinema forever.
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00:00How often do you see them?
00:05All the time.
00:07Welcome to Miss Mojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the most incredible movie performances by child actors that completely upstaged their more seasoned co-stars.
00:16I still want you to come.
00:18Let's see.
00:20I have to go now.
00:22Number 10. Roman Griffin Davis, Jojo Rabbit.
00:26Roman Griffin Davis was only 11 when he landed the lead in Taika Waititi's World War II satire, Jojo Rabbit.
00:33Davis played Jojo Betzler, a young Nazi enthusiast whose worldview completely unravels after he discovers that his mother is secretly sheltering a Jewish girl.
00:42I can't be here.
00:44Well, your mother invited me, so I suppose that makes me her guest.
00:48Not allowed.
00:48What will you do, sweet Hitler-shen?
00:51Although he was born into a family of filmmakers, this was Davis' acting debut, and he was surrounded by an army, no pun intended, of acclaimed talent.
01:00Not only was his mother played by Oscar-nominated actor Scarlett Johansson, he also appeared alongside Sam Rockwell, Stephen Merchant, and Waititi himself.
01:10Man, that was a complete bust.
01:12Mind explaining that?
01:13She's not.
01:16She doesn't seem like a bad person.
01:18Yet it was Davis who commanded everyone's attention, delivering a performance so subtly powerful, it made his experienced co-stars look like they were the ones just making their debut.
01:29And the sooner we have peace, the better.
01:31Oh, the war will end.
01:33We will crush our enemies into dust, and when they are destroyed, we shall use their graves as toilets.
01:38Okay, no more politics.
01:40Number 9.
01:41Hayley Steinfeld, True Grit
01:43The Coen brothers' True Grit follows 14-year-old Matty Ross, a fiercely determined young girl who hires a gruff bounty hunter to avenge her father's death.
01:52I'm looking for the man who shot and killed my father, Frank Ross, in front of the Monarch boarding house.
01:56The man's name is Tom Chaney.
01:58They say he's over in Indian territory, and I need somebody to go after him.
02:01Then newcomer Hayley Steinfeld played Matty Ross, and for the better part of the film, she appears opposite Jeff Bridges,
02:07the veteran actor who was just coming off of an Oscar win for 2009's Crazy Heart.
02:12Nevertheless, you just couldn't take your eyes off Steinfeld.
02:16The then 13-year-old actor brought such an unwavering intensity to the role that cut through the bravado of her co-stars with clarity and conviction.
02:24There's a posse of officers up there who will force you to go.
02:27Well, that is interesting news.
02:29And how many is up there?
02:30Right around 50.
02:32And they're all well-armed and they mean business.
02:34The rapid-fire dialogue rolled off of her tongue, and her deadpan humour felt completely natural.
02:39Never forced.
02:40In a film brimming with grit, hers was undoubtedly the truest of all.
02:45The saddle is not for sale.
02:46I will keep it.
02:47Gloria Daggett will prove ownership of the Grey Horse.
02:49He will come after you with a ret of Rebleven.
02:51A what?
02:51All right, now, listen very carefully, as I will not bargain further.
02:56Number 8. Kirsten Dunst.
02:58Interview with the Vampire.
02:59Kirsten Dunst was the first actress producers considered for the role of Claudia in Interview with the Vampire.
03:05But even after auditioning thousands, they just kept coming back to her.
03:10And it's easy to see why.
03:11You dress me like a doll.
03:14You make my hair like a doll.
03:16Why?
03:17Some of these, Claudia, are so old.
03:20Tattered.
03:22At just 11, she had to portray a young girl turned into a vampire by Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt.
03:28The pressure of acting opposite such big names would overwhelm most.
03:31But Dunst held her ground like a seasoned pro.
03:34I had a mother once, and Louis, he had a wife.
03:37He was mortal, the same as she, and so was I.
03:41Claudia.
03:41You made us what we are, didn't you?
03:43In every scene, she navigates the confusion and torment of a child trapped in an immortal body with ease.
03:50It's a role that you would think demands experience.
03:52But Dunst's portrayal proves that true talent isn't limited by age.
03:56Unsurprisingly, she was the only cast member nominated for a Golden Globe.
04:01Will we forgive each other then?
04:05Yes.
04:06Number 7.
04:07Natalie Portman, Leon the Professional.
04:09When an actor delivers a career-defining performance, it's usually years into said career.
04:14However, Natalie Portman achieved this in her film debut.
04:17Because they killed my brother.
04:20What the hell did he do?
04:22He's four years old.
04:25He never used to cry.
04:27He just used to sit next to me and cuddled.
04:29In Leon the Professional, Portman plays a 12-year-old girl who forms an unlikely bond with a hitman while fleeing from a corrupt DEA agent.
04:37The adult actors in the film deliver wildly different performances.
04:41Jean Reno's hitman is stoic and measured, while Gary Oldman's villain is a chaotic mess.
04:46Banny?
04:47Bring me everyone.
04:52What do you mean everyone?
04:53Everyone!
04:55Yet neither could overshadow Portman, who portrayed Matilda with a versatile range of emotions, all delivered with a natural ease.
05:03For any actor, this would be impressive.
05:05But for someone so young, it was extraordinary.
05:08And, as we all know, it was just the beginning of the powerhouse career Portman has since built.
05:13What you doing?
05:14We said no women, no kids.
05:18Who do you think this is going to kill?
05:20Donkeys and monkeys?
05:21Number 6.
05:22Shirley Temple, Bright Eyes
05:24Where are you going?
05:26I'm going to the airport.
05:28Jump in, I'll give you a lift.
05:30Thanks, mister, but I'll have to get a faster car.
05:33I'm in a hurry.
05:34While the other child actors on this list certainly delivered memorable performances, this was one of the few who single-handedly drew audiences to the box office.
05:42After breaking out at just three years old, Shirley Temple solidified herself as Hollywood's number one box office drawer with her performance in 1934's Bright Eyes.
05:53Cracker Jack, man, fell the air, and there you are.
05:59Happy landing on a chocolate bar.
06:02As Shirley Blake, a spirited orphan who brings light and joy to everyone she meets, Temple effortlessly stole the spotlight.
06:10No matter how hard they tried, the more experienced adult actors like James Dunn and Lois Wilson were simply no match for Temple's infectious charm and stage presence.
06:19It was that magnetic energy that connected with audiences and had them flocking to the theatres just to see her.
06:26And we're together, and the March Christmas, and everything.
06:30And it'll be a merry Christmas, won't it?
06:32The merriest we've ever had.
06:33The very, very merriest.
06:35Number 5.
06:36Abigail Breslin, Little Miss Sunshine
06:38Well, they just called right now and said the girl who won had to forfeit her crown.
06:42I don't know why, something about Dietrich, but anyway, now she has a place in the state contest in Redondo Beach.
06:47At the time of its release in 2006, the cast of Little Miss Sunshine weren't exactly A-list actors.
06:54However, most of them had decades of acting experience with several Academy Award nominations to their names.
07:00Yet, the one person who completely stole the show was 10-year-old Abigail Breslin.
07:04Can I get the waffles and, um, what does Alamode mean?
07:11Oh, that means it comes with ice cream.
07:12Okay, Alamode, thanks.
07:14Playing a quirky little girl with big dreams of winning a beauty pageant, Breslin brought a sweet, unfiltered honesty that became the film's beating heart.
07:22Even her adult co-stars, Greg Kinnear and Alan Arkin, were floored by her drive and work ethic at such a tender age.
07:29I don't want to be a loser.
07:31You're not a loser. Where'd you get the idea you're a loser?
07:34Because Dad hates losers.
07:38Although the Oscar she was nominated for ultimately went to someone else, there's no doubt that Breslin lived up to the film's title by shining the brightest in every single scene.
07:47Number 4. Macaulay Culkin. Home Alone.
07:50Granted, Macaulay Culkin wasn't a total rookie when he landed the role of Kevin McAllister in Home Alone.
07:55But compared to his veteran co-stars Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern, who played burglars Harry and Marv, he was still the kid on set.
08:02What are you going to do to him, Harry?
08:04I'm going to do exactly what he did to us. I'm going to burn his head with a blowtorch.
08:08You're going to smash his face with an iron!
08:10And yet, for a film packed with such heavy-handed slapstick comedy, Culkin somehow avoids turning Kevin into a cartoon.
08:16He delivers his lines with a cool, almost suspiciously grown-up confidence, and has a comedic timing that is clearly beyond his years.
08:24I'm up here, you morons! Come and get me!
08:27You guys give up, or you're thirsty for more?
08:34Even when things veer into the absurd, Culkin remains grounded and never loses that wide-eyed charm.
08:39In doing so, he not only makes the audience root for him, but he makes it abundantly clear that this is his film, and no one else's.
08:47I went shopping yesterday.
08:51You shopping?
08:53I got the milk, eggs, and fabric softener.
08:55Number 3. Saoirse Ronan – Atonement
08:58It certainly speaks volumes when a 12-year-old steps onto the set with the likes of James McAvoy, Keira Knightley, and Vanessa Redgrave,
09:06and ends up being the only one nominated for an Oscar.
09:09But that's exactly what Saoirse Ronan pulled off.
09:12Now, Bryony, what's your play about?
09:15Well, it's about how love is all very well, but you have to be sensible.
09:22In Atonement, Ronan played 13-year-old Bryony Talis, whose misguided take on a private moment between her sister and the housekeeper's son sets off a chain of devastating consequences.
09:32Although it was one of her first ever roles, Ronan delivered a performance so chilling and precise, she practically hijacked the film from her adult co-stars.
09:40With just an icy stare, she said more than pages of dialogue ever could.
09:53Even after her character aged out and she was replaced, Ronan's presence still haunted every frame.
09:59All you have to do is show them the letter.
10:01You won't tell anyone, will you? Promise?
10:03I promise.
10:04Good.
10:05If he found out, there's no knowing what he might do.
10:07Number 2. Hayley Joel Osment.
10:09The Sixth Sense.
10:10Bruce Willis isn't exactly the kind of actor who fades into the background, especially in his heyday.
10:15But opposite Hayley Joel Osment in The Sixth Sense, he had no choice.
10:20I see dead people.
10:25In your dreams?
10:29Osment starred in the film as Cole Sear, a young boy cursed with the ability to see the dead.
10:34Every whispered line, wide-eyed stare and trembling pause was delivered with a complexity that you'd never expect from an 11-year-old.
10:42But Osment had it in abundance.
10:44It's for you.
10:48She wanted to tell you something.
10:50In scene after scene, opposite actors with far more credits than he had years, Osment was magnetic.
10:56And he didn't have to do too much to pull viewers in.
10:59Somehow, this pint-sized actor managed to carry the weight of the film on his small shoulders, and he made it look effortless.
11:05Well, that's very wrong.
11:08Grandma's gone, you know that.
11:10I know.
11:11She wanted me to tell you.
11:13Cole, please stop.
11:13She wanted me to tell you she saw you dance.
11:16Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.
11:19Linda Blair, The Exorcist.
11:21A chilling performance that blew everyone out of the water.
11:24You really don't want me to play, huh?
11:26No, I do.
11:28Captain Howdy said no.
11:30Captain who?
11:31Captain Howdy.
11:33Who's Captain Howdy?
11:34You know, I make the questions and he does the answers.
11:38Mara Wilson, Matilda.
11:40Wilson's quiet charm ends up doing all the talking.
11:42I love it here.
11:43I love my school.
11:45It isn't fair.
11:46Miss Honey, please don't let them...
11:47Get in the car, Melinda.
11:48Matilda.
11:49Whatever.
11:50I wanted to stay with Miss Honey.
11:52Miss Honey doesn't want you.
11:54Why would she want some snotty, disobedient kid?
11:56Jacob Tremblay, Room.
11:58Brie Larson was phenomenal, but we'd argue Tremblay was the scene stealer here.
12:03I don't get it.
12:04I'm going to make your face so hot that old Nick will have to take you to the hospital in his truck.
12:09And then when you get there, you're going to say to the doctors,
12:11Help, police!
12:12Well, maybe next year when I'm six.
12:15Tonight.
12:15Daphne Keen, Logan.
12:17Keen's seasoned co-stars were no match for her feral performance.
12:21Jonah, Gideon, Rebecca, Delilah, and Richtor.
12:25Who is that?
12:26Jonah, Gideon.
12:27Who is that?
12:29Jonah, Gideon, Rebecca, Delilah, and Richtor.
12:34Yorta Cota.
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12:49Number one, Anna Paquin, The Piano.
12:53At the same moment that my father was struck dead, my mother was struck down while she never spoke another word.
13:01Jane Campion's The Piano tells the story of a non-verbal woman who communicates only through her young daughter.
13:07Considering the film featured heavyweights like Holly Hunter, Harvey Keitel, and Sam Neill,
13:12it would seem nearly impossible for a child actor with no prior experience to steal the show.
13:17But that's precisely what Anna Paquin did.
13:20Let her spit the man, don't fight until she bleeds!
13:25Where's your mother?
13:27Where's she gone?
13:28To hell!
13:29Paquin was a constant presence in the film, delivering more lines than anyone else,
13:34and sharing scenes with all those seasoned names.
13:36And every time, it felt like she was showing them how it's done.
13:40Of course, the other actors were impressive,
13:42but Paquin's unexpected powerhouse of a performance was simply impossible to look away from.
13:48Mother wanted me to give this to Mr. Baines.
13:51I thought maybe it was not the proper thing to do.
13:55Shall I open it?
13:57No.
13:58Give it to me.
13:58It's no wonder she took home the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress.
14:02What other scenes stealing child stars did we miss?
14:04Let us know in the comments below.
14:06Yes.
14:08It killed them, unfortunately.
14:11But it keeps the blood warm.
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